Short range communications generally refers to a technology of providing communication within a small area (several hundred meters). Currently, common technologies roughly include wireless short range communications such as an IEEE 802.11 WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network), an IEEE 802.15 WPAN (Wireless Personal Area Network), HomeRF (Home Radio Frequency), and an infrared transmission technology, and wired communications technologies such as Ethernet. The wired communications technologies may have a very long communications range, and are not necessarily short range communications. In this method, the wired communications technologies are generally referred to as short range communications, which is not described again.
In a scenario of cooperative communication in a single network node and between multiple users, or referred to as an MUCC (Multiple UEs Cooperative Communication) scenario, when short range communication is performed between at least two UEs, an MUCC relationship may be established between these UEs to increase reliability and a throughput, for example, one UE of the at least two UEs needs to send or receive data, and another UE except the UE may assist the UE in communication. Herein, the UE is named as a benefited UE, and the another UE except the UE is named as a supporting UE; therefore, the supporting UE is a UE used to carry and transmit data, and the benefited UE is a sender or a final receiver and user of data.
For downlink data, a network may separately send downlink data to the supporting UE, and the supporting UE sends the data to the benefited UE by means of short range communications (such as WiFi), to complete cooperative communication between the UEs; the benefited UE finally merges the data. Similarly, uplink data may also be sent to the network by the benefited UE or another supporting UE, and then the network merges the data, to complete cooperative communication between the UEs.
However, in most short range communications technologies, connections between nodes are provided, QoS (Quality of Service) is basically not distinguished, and further, there is no concept of a bearer. In a cellular network, a radio bearer is set up to distinguish different QoS. When multiple UEs cooperative communication is performed, for uplink and downlink data, a supporting UE or a benefited UE cannot distinguish, on a short range link, a radio bearer corresponding to the data; therefore, further data processing cannot be performed, and different QoS cannot be distinguished.